HOLLISTER – This place was once full of darkness.
Within the walls of the Hollister apartment building people not only used drugs for the first time, but they used drugs for the last time. Death seemed to have a grip on this place.
But as the previous landlord continued giving his tour, Rita Nogal heard God whisper to her spirit, “What the devil made for darkness, I made for light.”
She had heard God speak those words before, but that time it wasn’t about redeeming a building; it was … [Read more...]

JEFFERSON CITY – Erin Hawley’s faith and dependence on God has grown the most – not in her years at Yale Law School or while working as a clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, not even as a supportive and loving wife to Missouri Attorney General and current Missouri Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Josh Hawley – but it’s been during her role as mother to her two young sons, Elijah and Blaise, that God brought Hawley closer to Himself.
Hawley, who has worked primarily … [Read more...]

JOPLIN – Much like the young shepherd David, some churches might appear small in the eyes of man, but they often have the most heart in the eyes of God.
“People who attend smaller, or normative-sized, churches are looking for authenticity,” said Jamie Tickel, pastor at First Baptist Church (FBC) here. “They want to belong, they don’t want to slip in and be anonymous. When they make the decision to go to a smaller church, these are people looking for a relationship.”
Tickel was one of … [Read more...]

KANSAS CITY – Last year a young couple who had been living together for four years came to LifeConnection Northeast’s Sunday gathering and then joined a small group. Chris Seay, pastor/planter of LifeConnection, saw a transformation take place in the heart of the young woman, who requested a counseling session for guidance on what it would look like to follow Jesus in their relationship.
“I graciously and honestly told them that it would honor Jesus if they stopped living together and … [Read more...]

HAZELWOOD – Sometimes staying in a hotel is no vacation.
“There are hotels in Hazelwood that cater to people who are homeless,” said Jim Walker, lead pastor at Hazelwood Baptist Church (HBC), located in northwest St. Louis County. “They are families who get evicted because they couldn’t make rent or because outstanding utility bills overwhelm them and they’ve exhausted their other options. They are living week to week or even day by day.”
Seeing the need and desiring to do something about … [Read more...]

VIBURNUM – She had a 6-foot-wide hole in her roof and a 55-gallon drum catching rainwater in her living room.
Retired after 35 years in the Viburnum school district and now living with her son who was diagnosed with cancer, Love Thy Neighbor gave this elderly widow a brand new roof.
“I was on that crew and every person except me had her as a teacher,” said Justin Perry, pastor at First Baptist Church here. “While the crew worked, she cried tears of joy and told story after story about … [Read more...]

ST. JOSEPH – One year into setting up and tearing down each week in a roller rink turned bingo hall – a rite of passage for many young church plants, God orchestrated a miracle for Strong Tower Baptist Church.
“We got a phone call from a dwindling congregation in a different denomination,” said Senior Pastor Tom Wilson. “They said they were prayerfully considering giving us their building. They had to send out an e-mail asking others in their own denomination if they wanted it and if … [Read more...]

JOPLIN – The mission doesn’t get powerful until it gets personal.
“When a person sees the darkness in the world and then comes back they are much more motivated to do something about it,” said John Swadley, lead pastor at Forest Park Church here. “We desire to know the people out there on the field making the sacrifices to spread the gospel where they are so that we can play a small part in advancing their work.”
That’s where Forest Park’s new giving strategy, the Acts 1:8 Project, comes … [Read more...]

REPUBLIC— Though retirement isn’t necessarily on Denny Marr’s radar, he still loves cheering on his fellow Baby Boomers as they leave the workforce and are able to give more of their time and energy to their church and to the kingdom of God.
“Senior adults are probably the greatest untapped resource the church has,” said Marr, senior adults and pastoral care pastor at Calvary Baptist Church here. “Their wisdom, their time – our church needs them. And while I certainly don’t want to wear … [Read more...]

ST. LOUIS – Mary Halliburton is usually one of the first church members to arrive on a given Sunday. As she meets her pastor, John Childers, at the doors, she often has a book or magazine to give him. It’s not that the jokes in his sermon aren’t funny; it’s just that there are even funnier quips inside the pages of Reader’s Digest.
“She volunteers at the thrift store where she can get books for 25 cents,” said Childers, pastor at South County Baptist Church here. “She’s given me … [Read more...]

PARK HILLS – It was obvious by her sad eyes she didn’t want to be there.
“The young lady had cystic fibrosis and had to have a small oxygen tank with her,” said Sandy Hovis, member of Esther Baptist Church here. “My friend Connie was attending her and I kept running back and forth with different dresses for her to try on.”
Then Hovis saw someone bring in a stunning floor-length gown that had been donated moments before.
“It was beautiful and even had a little purse that went with it, so … [Read more...]

MOUNT VERNON – On the south lawn of the historic Lawrence County Courthouse Nora Lewis, 84, closes her eyes to pray.
Lewis, a member of First Baptist Church (FBC) here, never misses a “Prayer on the Square” meeting. It’s her standing appointment every Thursday at noon for the last eight and a half years.
“Rain, shine, snow storm or heat, Nora has been a part of our prayer group since the beginning,” said Rabbi Eukel, who leads Kehila Nahar Zerach River Rising Congregation, a Messianic … [Read more...]

Ethics

MBC Executive Director John Yeats: “We must remain vigilant until every child is safe in his/her mother’s womb. We must also be much more caring for every mother whose life circumstances are so tragic that she would contemplate a medical procedure or abortifacient to end her child’s life.”